Police are hunting three French nationals, including two brothers from the Paris region, after suspected Islamist gunmen killed 12 people at the Paris offices of the French paper Charlie Hebdo. EU leaders shocked by the shooting described it as an intolerable act of barbarism. EurActiv France reports.

On Wednesday (7 January), the satirical paper Charlie Hebdo was the victim of the worst terrorist attack seen in France since the Saint Michel bombing in 1995.

Three gunmen armed with Kalashnikov rifles and rocket launchers attacked and killed two police officers who were surveying the building in the 11th arrondissement of Paris, before bursting into the paper’s weekly editorial meeting and shooting people at point-blank range.

They then left the scene shouting the name of Allah. The attack lasted ten minutes and the terrorists made their getaway in a stolen car.

The artists Charb, who was also the director of publication, Wolinski, Cabu and Tignous are among the dead. The economist Bernard Maris, a member of the General Council of the Bank of France, is also among the victims. Reports say that the terrorists did not shoot at the women who were present in the meeting, including Luce Lapin, specialist in animal protection and vegetarianism.

The satirical paper has received numerous threats from Islamic extremists since it published a caricature of the Prophet Mohammed in 2006. In response to these threats, one of the victims, the journalist and artist Charb, published a section called “fatwa of the week”. The publication employs 30 regular journalists and freelancers and around twenty artists.

In November 2011, the offices of the weekly paper were destroyed in an arson attack. In 2013, a 24 year-old man was imprisoned for calling for the decapitation of the director of Charlie Hebdo following the publication of caricatures of Mohammed.

French politicians have called for national unity after what François Hollande described as “an act of exceptional barbarism”.

The French Prime Minister Manuel Valls immediately activated the highest-level security alert, Vigipirate. Schools will be protected as a priority, and their exits blocked. Investigators launched an appeal for witnesses on Wednesday afternoon after the attacks which left 12 dead in the offices of Charlie Hebdo, but the brigade in charge of the operation lost the trail of the terrorists.

The ministers Bernard Cazeneuve (Interior), Jean-Yves Le Drian (Defence), Christiane Taubira (Justice), Laurent Fabius (Foreign Affairs) and Fleur Pellerin (Culture and Communication), as well as the heads of the main police and gendarmerie services was called into a crisis meeting by the President.

Security was greatly increased around the presidential palace, where extra police officers have been deployed with bullet-proof vests and automatic weapons.

The National Union of Journalists has called for a rally on Wednesday evening at Place de la République, close to the site of the attack.

Positions

In Brussels, the President of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz, invited all MEPs to observe a minute of silence at 10:45 local time at the Agora Simone Veil.

"This heinous act is an attack against our values of freedom of expression and freedom of the press, against tolerance and mutual respect. I condemn it strongly,” Schulz said. “On behalf of the European Parliament, I express my condolences to the families and friends of the victims,” he added.

Jean-Claude Juncker, the President of the European Commission, said in a statement that he was "profoundly shocked by the brutal and inhuman attack which hit the offices of Charlie Hebdo. This is an intolerable act of barbarism which affects us all as human beings. My thoughts are with the victims and their families. I express, personally and in the name of the European Commission, my greatest solidarity with France".

Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, has also published a statement, saying "this horrible act is not only an act of aggression against the lives of the French citizens, but also an unjustifiable attack on the freedom of the press and opinion, a foundation of our free and democratic culture".

"No act of barbarism will ever extinguish the freedom of the press. We are a united country and we will rally together," the FrenchPresident François Hollande said.

"The murders in Paris are sickening. We stand with the French people in the fight against terror and defending the freedom of the press," the British Prime Minister David Cameron wrote.

"I am shocked by the appalling attack that took place this morning in Paris against Charlie Hebdo. The European Union stands side by side with France after this atrocious act. It is a brutal attack against our fundamental values, against freedom of expression which is a pillar of our democracy," the President of the European Council Donald Tusk said. He added "In the name of the European Union I offer my deepest condolences to the families and friends of the victims and I express my solidarity with the French authorities and the French people".

"I am profoundly shocked by the news of the attack in Paris. I send our condolences to the families of the victims and to the French people," the Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta wrote.

The Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb tweeted "we strongly condemn the horrible shooting at #CharlieHebdo. We must all stand up for freedom of speech and expression".

The head of the Spanish government, Mariano Rajoy, said "my firm condemnation of the terrorist attack in Paris. My condolences and solidarity to the French people and the victims."

"I’m deeply shocked by the deadly attack on the Charlie Hebdo. My thoughts are with its team, police and their families," said Martin Schulz, the President of the European Parliament.

"Today we have seen what a religion can become when it seeks to impose its obsession and fanaticism by terror. Today we have one task, to come together in national unity, to refuse to back down, to pursue the terrorists and to punish them. It is in these times of war that we see the extent of a people's determination to protect their values," said François Bayrou from the Democratic Movement.

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There needs to be some attitude adjustment amongst the muslim community in Europe. They do not yet seem to have taken on board the idea that…. they have freedom of religious worship but the quid pro quo is that in this, our European society we have freedom of expression – which includes satire, ridicule and jokes & that yes, very little is sacred & that includes the prophet muhammed, his life and the life styles and beliefs of his followers. My suggestion to all muslims in Europe is, if you don’t like this situation please feel free to leave to… Read more »

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jorge.nunezferrer

09/01/2015 17:35

Hi Mike,

You are right… but we should not only look one way. Let’s not forget that the people now rising against muslims in Europe are those that like censorship, do not like homosexuals, generally do not like anybody that looks or thinks differently. Some 70 years go the philosophical grandparents on right wind extremists would have shot cartoonist too. There are many different types of muslims and you cannot compare a peaceful Bangladeshi to an IS fanatic. Fanatics can come from any side: Keep your eyes open. Let hope we do not regress in obscurantism either.

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Gerry

07/01/2015 20:16

There will be an adjustment af attitude in Europe sooner or later. The onslought of illegal immigration and fanatical muslem attack will sooner rather then later take it’s toll, people will loose their calm and patience and there will be an acceptance of an ideal of ‘Fortress Europe’. The borders will close, and those who do not belong will be ejected, basta.

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Mike Parr

08/01/2015 08:33

Perhaps, but before that we need to get much closer to energy independence. At which point no more arab oil or gas needed (ditto Russia) and a total withdrawal of embassies from all countries in north africa & the middle east (including Israel) , reduction in trade & leave the nutters to get on with it.

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Gerry

08/01/2015 09:24

Well, you can still conduct trade from a fortress, but what I meant was that the era of open borders may well come to an end. Europe’s borders are abused on a monumental scale and this is getting worse fast. Our leaders are not dealing with the problem and are still sporting an ideology of openness that is rapidly becoming dated . There is a way out but that would entail a lot of backtracking and a new approach to the whole subject. The longer we wait, the more radical the adjustment will be. But hey, maybe I’m wrong and… Read more »

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Gerry

08/01/2015 09:30

I agree with you that the islamic community needs to get a change in attitude. Actually what needs to happen is that the arab world go through its own era of enlightenment and accepts that their religion is just a bunch of stories. That would solve a lot of our problems.

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an european

08/01/2015 08:33

It’s clear the red line has been more than exceeded !
all IS sub-organisazions still hidden in Europe should know that we are surely not ready to die for the neverseen Mohommad but should remain the Romanium Imperialistic territory with our tolerable freedom of expression we have today rather than decapitators or any stoning character of Quran believers on this century which doesn’t even exist!
Europe has to defend and the E.U. has clearly stall the IS immigrants !
Enough is enough !

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1339301634

15/01/2015 15:35

Sorry, but this title is downright misleading.

Europe witnessed a bloody terrorist attack in 2011, in Norway, where 77 people were brutally gunned down by a maniac who was indeed a terrorist.

I fully endorse you on this. By the way, I also would, as a European that lives in a continent that a mere 80 year ago persecuted and killed in masses minorities of race or ‘wrong’ political inclinations, be careful of taking a moral high-ground. The fantastic “west” has show also its moral high-ground in the middle East in the last 2 decades bombing states for largely political reasons, causing large “collateral” numbers of deaths… we made it easy for those groups to appear and created an incredible wave of migrants. I want to see you in their shoes guys,… Read more »